'I believe routine smear test saved my life'
"If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't be here to tell my story."Toni Smith from Eastwood, in Nottinghamshire, went for a routine smear test when she was 28-years-old and believes doing so saved her life.Cervical screening is for human papillomavirus (HPV), which causes most cervical cancers, and women between the ages of 25 and 64 are offered it every few years.But more than five million women are not up to date with the test, according to the government.
Just 68.8% of women currently take up the offer of cervical cancer screening - well below the NHS England target of 80%.Toni told the BBC that after going for a routine smear test, HPV was found and she was later diagnosed with cervical cancer in February 2019. The mother-of-two was later offered a range of treatments by the NHS and chose to have a hysterectomy.
'Please, just go'
The 36-year-old was in remission for five years until July last year when she got the all clear.She said: "I think my reflection is life is only a proportion of what goes on if you don't attend."It's uncomfortable, but that's going to save your life – it saved mine."Toni urged women to attend cervical screening and added: "Please, please just go."NHS England has now announced from January, a test which can be done at home that contains a long cotton-wool bud to swab the lining of the vagina, will be available.Toni said she thinks the concept is an "amazing idea" and added: "The home testing kits gives that benefit to the woman, you haven't got to go somewhere, you don't have to feel uncomfortable, it's done in your own time."The Department for Health and Social Care in England said the scheme would tackle "deeply entrenched barriers" that keep women away from cervical screening.This can be due to embarrassment, discomfort, lack of time as well as religious or cultural concerns.A recent trial showed the rollout of home test kits across England could increase the proportion screened to 77% over three years.
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